'It's about the players' ... and more

On the weekend after next, two nationally ranked football teams will clash at Bryant-Denny Stadium in a spirit of genuine cooperation, respect and dignity. Fans will marvel over the skill of such talented athletes wearing crimson and white or purple and gold. And nary a word will be uttered about the coaches controlling each sideline.

Right.

"Nothing to see here"

This, ladies and gentlemen, is the viewpoint that Alabama's Nick Saban and LSU's Les Miles are already pushing heading into the Nov. 3 game that will decide first place in the SEC West. Yes, it's all about the players, says the only person pictured on the front and back of Alabama's media guide.

Expect this line to repeated again and again leading up to kickoff, when Saban finally gets the opportunity to pounce on his team of three years ago. And vice versa. ... Or maybe I miss the point. Maybe I'm one of those that will try to make this about the coaches, since I'm sure no one out there cares about Saban taking on his old school.

Right.

And since it was in the Press-Register's news section, you may have missed today's update on the textbook investigation. There is basically nothing new (which is good news for UA) other than approval for the suspended football players to practice.

I've received a lot of e-mails with questions about this scandal. While I'm not certain of all relevant specifics -- like how exactly the players obtained those books -- here is my best educated guesses to some of the most common questions.

Q: Is the NCAA investigating Alabama?

A: No. Alabama, for now, is investigating itself. The school discovered the violations, notified the NCAA and SEC and is going ahead from there.

Q: Will Alabama be put back on probation?

A: Probably not. In terms of NCAA sanctions, Alabama is NOT in the same boat as Ball State, which recently received two years probation and loss of scholarships for a textbook situation. BSU's case, for one, involved 89 athletes and an in-house investigation that was unwisely disorganized. If nothing else, Alabama has been extremely proactive in dealing with this situation, checking everyone and everything right away. This represents a change from the past, to be sure. One can't help but think the NCAA will take that into account when reviewing the self-report, so long as dozens of more Tide athletes aren't implicated.

Q: Will Alabama have to forfeit games because of earlier games they used the five players?

A: Highly doubtful. Alabama stressed it uncovered these violations Thursday and then suspended the players Friday. From the school's perspective, the clock should start upon discovery of the situation. Now if the school knew about the violations and still allowed the five guys to play, that's where forfeits would come in.

Q: Will the suspended players be able to participate against LSU?

A: My guess, at this moment, is no. These things will probably have to happen for them to return: 1) Alabama finishes its investigation; 2) files a detailed report to the NCAA and SEC: 3) those bodies receive the report and began their own investigation, which could be extensive or not, depending on their confidence in Alabama's handling of the matter; 4) then finally, the NCAA can reinstate those players.

Even for the most minor, secondary violations, this process can take weeks. But you never know ... the NCAA could also rubber stamp the return for players with lesser charges and look farther into those with higher dollar totals. Folks, it's the NCAA. They make the rules and work at their own pace. Predicting their movements is basically impossible.